Solitron Gets Contract Worth $2 Million A Year

Solitron Devices said Wednesday that it would increase its defense subcontract business, beginning with a $2.4 million contract from Westinghouse Electric.

The Riviera Beach electronics firm said it will supply thick-film circuits for use in the F-16 fighter jet, B-1 bomber and other defense programs. The electronic circuits are used to save space, weight and energy in weapons.

Westinghouse`s business will be worth at least $2 million a year for the next decade, says John Stayduhar, Solitron`s chairman. Stayduhar said he expects subcontracts from other companies to follow.

Solitron, which makes electronic components in its Riviera Beach and Port Salerno plants, already has 75 to 80 percent of its business in defense and space program subcontracts, Stayduhar said.

Stayduhar said the contract should boost the company`s revenues toward its goal of $100 million in revenues. Last year the firm had $50 million in sales.

On Tuesday, Solitron said it would close its San Diego, Calif., plant and Tappan, N.Y. office, and transfer more than 100 of those jobs to its Riviera Beach plant, which now employs about 800. The company also reported a quarterly loss of $954,000 compared with a profit in 1985 of $869,000.